This Master's thesis attempts to underline the link between environmental law, more precisely international climate change law, and human rights law. Since the Rio Summit in 1992 and the emergence of Agenda 21's soft law principles, the growing connection between these two spheres of law seem to have had an influence on the latest programmes derived from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (or UNFCCC) adopted in 1992. Does the latest addition to the UNFCCC adopted in 2015, the Paris Agreement, better highlight the importance of this link between human rights and the environment?
In facing the inevitable effects brought on by climate change, we will explore the efficiency of the Framework-Convention's bodies and programmes tasked with aiding Member States adaptation and mitigation efforts. Do the commitments undertaken by world States in their intended nationally determined contributions underline the urgent need for action? In truth, the international community seems to suffer from a severe lack of ambition, often referred to the "ambition gap" or "emissions gap". Failure to sufficiently mitigate greenhouse gas emissions will undeniably result in a greater need to finance adaptation, yet "climate finance" already suffers from underfunding, which implies that the effects of climate change will not be sufficiently offset to ensure human rights violations won't take place.
Is it possible that by renouncing to take ambitious commitments, Member States violate their human rights obligations as well as their obligations under the Framework Convention? We will explore this question.